New Delhi : Amidst the ongoing controversy surrounding the Sanchar Sathi app, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has issued a clarification. He stated that this app will neither spy on anyone nor monitor calls.
Shri Scindia said, “If you want to use the app, activate it. If you don’t, there’s no need to activate it. It’s not mandatory. You can delete it from your phone if you wish.” He added that the government has a responsibility to make this app available to the public, as its purpose is to protect citizens from fraud, online fraud, and cybercrime.
Earlier, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday accused the Department of Telecommunications’ directive requiring the “Sanchar Sathi” app to be pre-installed on new mobile handsets, calling it a “spy app” and suggesting the government was attempting to turn the country into a dictatorship. The Department of Telecommunications has directed mobile handset manufacturers and importers to ensure that all new mobile devices are pre-installed with the fraud alert app “Sanchar Sathi.”
Speaking to the media in the Parliament complex, Priyanka Gandhi said, “Sanchar Saathi is a spying app and frankly, it’s ridiculous. Citizens have a right to privacy. Everyone should have the right to send messages to family and friends without the government’s scrutiny.” She claimed, “This isn’t just about snooping on telephones. They (the government) are turning this country into a dictatorship in every form. Parliament isn’t functioning because the government is refusing to discuss any topic. It’s easy to blame the opposition, but they’re not allowing any discussion, and that’s not democracy.” She said that in a healthy democracy, discussion is essential, and everyone has different views, which the government listens to.
Lok Sabha member Priyanka Gandhi said, “There’s a fine line between reporting fraud and seeing what every citizen of India is doing on their phone… There needs to be an effective system for reporting fraud. We’ve discussed this at length in the context of cybersecurity. Cybersecurity is necessary, but that doesn’t give you an excuse to infiltrate every citizen’s phone.” She also said, “I don’t think any citizen would be happy.”